Yumi and I went to the Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary today, and saw tons of birds, including a couple of eagles up close. I left my DSLRs at home, the better to enjoy walking with my lovely wife, but ended up taking 458 photos with my wee Canon 520HS pocket cam!
Male Wood Duck
Male Wood Duck with a couple of females vying for attention
Female Wood Ducks duking it out
The Sandhill Cranes have become very accustomed to people over the last several years.
Crane feather closeup
They can be rather intimidating!
Love those curls!
Chickadees are bold and accustomed to hand feeding
This eagle was on the viewing tower and strangely unafraid of people
It sat there with lots of people coming up and down the tower
Red-Winged Blackbird
This American Coot appeared to be ill
Another bold eagle that allowed people to get within meters of it
Yumi and I joined birder George Clulow’s bird and nature walk today at Burnaby Lake, one of the City of Burnaby Parks Department nature tours.
The day began moody and grey, but by the time the three hours were up, the sun had broken out and skies were blue. We are so fortunate to have this gem of a park right in the middle of our city.
I left the DSLRs and big lenses at home, bringing a pair of binoculars and learning as much from George as possible, for he’s a fount of knowledge about birds and the natural world.
All these shots taken with my wee pocket Canon SD520HS.
A brisk afternoon below-freezing walk in Byrne woods in SE #Burnaby does wonders to rejuvenate one’s stiff muscles and overtaxed mind.
Nature in general, and forests in particular, are my lifeline. They alleviate general blahs, stiff muscles from sitting too much at the desk, brain stupor from too much office work, and more. Get the blood pumping, muscles moving, and it’s amazing how much better you feel.
We are so fortunate to have this wonderful ravine park just out the back gate to our townhouse complex.
Took a slow, careful ramble along the icy trails in Burnaby’s Fraser Foreshore Park this afternoon.
This Great Blue Heron posed patiently while I shot again and again in changing light.
This bald eagle was hotly pursued down the river by a hawk and a couple of crows. Dunno what it had done to get them all so riled :-). Unfortunately I didn’t get any usable shots of the hawk, but I think it was a Red-tailed.
It was a cold, windy day, but bright and blue. I headed down to Centennial Beach in Tsawwassen, figuring there’d be eagles there, and I wasn’t disappointed!
Our Byrne Creek ravine walk in SE #Burnaby, BC, was graced with lovely natural ice sculptures due to the freezing temperatures.
We came across a pair of rodents smooching in the snow. They were enamored with each other to the point that they ignored us, though we were just two meters away. (Credit to my wife Yumi for spotting these cuties : -)
There’s a story behind this photo that I posted in an album a few days ago — perception, memory, awareness, and ???
If we watch nature shows, we are often astounded at the abilities of all sorts of animals with brains much smaller than ours to remember food locations, routes and way points, etc.
I took this photo in heavy snowfall/sleet conditions. I was doing a Byrne Creek Ravine loop, my camera swathed in a plastic sleeve, me bundled in fleece and Gore-Tex, my head down as I slogged back up the hill.
I remember suddenly having the thought, “that bush with red berries would make a nice shot covered with snow, and it should be right about here.”
I stopped, raised my hooded head into the wind and snowy rain, and yes, the berries were right there, a few meters to my left.
Wow. We have abilities we are often not aware of. My subliminal mind knew exactly where I was.
There’s a story behind this photo that I posted in an album a few days ago — perception, memory, awareness, and ???